The present invention relates to a novel antibiotic substance, named Mycoplanecin, to a novel microorganism, Actinoplanes nov. sp. Strain No. 41042 capable of producing Mycoplanecin, and to a process for producing Mycoplanecin by cultivating a Mycoplanecin-producing microorganism of the genus Actinoplanes.
The novel antibiotic substance, Mycoplanecin, can be characterized by the following physical and chemical properties:
1. Colour and state PA0 2. Melting point PA0 3. Specific rotation PA0 4. Elemental analysis PA0 5. Ultraviolet absorption spectrum PA0 6. Infrared absorption spectrum PA0 7. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum PA0 8. Solubility PA0 9. Colour reaction PA0 10. Amino acid composition PA0 11. Antibacterial activity PA0 Physiological characteristics PA0 Medium A: Tryptone--yeast extract broth (ISP 1). PA0 Medium B: Peptone--yeast extract--iron agar (ISP 5). PA0 Medium C: Pridham-Gottlieb's agar. PA0 Medium D: Pridham-Gottlieb's agar plus yeast extract 0.5%. PA0 3. Mycelium components
White powder. PA1 161.degree.-167.degree. C. PA1 [.alpha.].sub.D.sup.21 66.degree. (C=0.4, chloroform). PA1 C, 61.78%; H, 8.48%; N, 11.75%. (After drying to constant weight) PA1 Only terminal absorption as shown in FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings, when measured at 20 .mu.g/ml in a 50% v/v aqueous methanolic solution. PA1 The spectrum, measured in a KBr disc, is shown in FIG. 2 of the accompanying drawings. PA1 The spectrum, as measured in deuterochloroform as solvent and with tetramethylsilane (TMS) as internal standard, is shown in FIG. 3 of the accompanying drawings. PA1 Soluble in methanol, ethanol, ethyl acetate, acetone and chloroform. PA1 Sparingly soluble in benzene. PA1 Insoluble in water. PA1 Brown-coloured with 50% v/v aqueous sulphuric acid Positive for iodine and potassium permanganate on silica gel thin layer chromatograms. Negative for ninhydrin and 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine. PA1 1mole each of glycine, proline, leucine, 2-amino-5-methylhexanoic acid, N-methylthreonine, N-methylleucine, methylproline and ethylproline; and 2 moles of N-methylvaline detected after hydrolysis with 6 N hydrochloric acid at 105.degree. C. for 20 hours. PA1 Strong antibacterial activity against various bacteria of the genus Mycobacterium.
In addition, Mycoplanecin has Rf values (on silica gel thin layer chromatography, F254, 0.25 mm, No. 5715, available from Merck and Co. Inc) of 0.15 when developed with ethyl acetate and 0.64 when developed with a 95:5 by volume mixture of chloroform and methanol.
The novel microorganism of the invention is Actinoplanes nov. sp. Strain No. 41042, which was isolated from a sample of soil collected in Sumoto City, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. The strain has been deposited under Accession No. FERM-4504 with the Technical Research Institute of the Microbial Industry, Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Japan. The strain has also been deposited under Accession No. NRRL-11462 with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Also provided, as part of the present invention, is a method of producing the new antibiotic substance, Mycoplanecin, which comprises cultivating a Mycoplanecin-producing microorganism of the genus Actinoplanes and then isolating Mycoplanecin from the culture.